Jane Weru

Akiba Mashinani Trust

Kenya, Africa

The challenge

In spite of rapid urbanisation there is still an acute need for land settlement in Kenya. Consequentially, the number and size of informal settlements around Kenya’s urban centres have ballooned,
with millions living in high-density slums without basic infrastructure, access to financial services or secure land tenure.

Business approach

Jane has become an organizer and spokesperson for Kenya’s slum dwellers, and has created the organisational infrastructure and tools needed to empower them to break out of an unrelenting cycle of poor living conditions, forced eviction and poverty. She is organising slum dwellers and formalising their efforts to prevent eviction and upgrade slum infrastructure and improve living conditions. She has also created a network that supports these efforts by providing technical expertise and assistance with regard to land tenure and eviction negotiations; savings and credit management; construction design and planning; and mapping and enumeration.
Some of the tools created by this network have gone on to be used by the government in other projects.

Goals and objectives

Jane is working with the media to run a national campaign targeted at the general public, private land owners, businesses,
the government and all Kenyans, appealing to them to help those living in the slums.